Kagame delivered the remarks as he attended the 27th National Prayer Breakfast hosted by Rwanda Leaders Fellowship, bringing together religious leaders, members of public and private sector for prayer and thanks giving.
The President said that Covid-19 pandemic had an impact on everyone around the world highlighting that he knew Rwanda would surmount the situation with what the nation went through.
“What we have gone through has left us resilient. Those who survived came out even stronger than they were. If you gave our country a personality, it would be David. David confronted giants who wanted him dead and he knocked them over. You can see the similarities with our country,” he said.
“God does not fail us, he gives us gifts and we are the ones who fail. As Rwanda, we should not fail ourselves,” Kagame added.
The Head of State revealed that confidence is paramount in whatever people do highlighting that Rwandans have what it takes to do the right thing and lead by example.
“We also have to have confidence in ourselves. What don’t we have as Rwandans, or Africans, I sometimes wonder, Africans how can we always be the bad example, the example of what is wrong, or does not work. Where do things fail?” he wondered.
“You cannot lead unless you lead by example. For leaders, humility is essential for many reasons. We have to be the example that people can emulate,” Kagame advised.
The President said, there are no attacks Rwanda has not faced, and stressed the need to pull a lesson from such experience.
“What has Rwanda not seen or experienced? There are no attacks we have not faced, sometimes from the whole world. We should draw strength and lessons from it, that enable us to move even faster towards our goals,” he said.
The Head of State underscored that the country forges strong leadership through endured hard times.
“We went through difficult times and lost a large number of people. There should be no loopholes to go easy on what led us to the loss to prevent reoccurrence. That is where leadership is forged. Leadership is forged in hardships, in addressing challenges that need to be solved,” he said.
Kagame observed that the country’s success should be partly attributed to individual efforts and the rest to God.
“When you think again and ask how did an individual succeed where others did not. 50% can be attributed to the individual but the other 50% is from God,” he noted.
Kagame said that there are many other reasons to thank God taking an example of the battlefield where some people survive yet others with same bravery lost lives.
“You go to war, you fight battles, and others who are as brave as you do not make it out. They die on the battlefield. You ask yourself why did I survive. How come I was able to survive the battlefield? You can’t find an answer because you are not the one who gives yourself the gift of life. What allows you to come back is that mystery of God. You can say you were lucky, but the reality is: it is thanks to God,” he affirmed.
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